Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Niranjan Davkhare on Wednesday submitted his resignation as a member of the Legislative Council, quit the party, and said he is going to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
While Mr. Davkhare said he is quitting the Sharad Pawar-led party as he is fed up of politics within its local unit, the NCP claimed that the leader from Thane had been expelled from the party for six years on the directive of state unit chief Jayant Patil.
Mr. Davkhare will be joining the BJP in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at the party office on Thursday.
Mr. Davkhare, who represented the Konkan graduates’ constituency, met Council chairman Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar in the morning and submitted his resignation. “I have witnessed the growth of the NCP since its inception. I am saddened while taking the decision to quit. But I was forced to do so because of the internal politics directed against me at the local level,” he said.
Asked whether the BJP had assured him a ticket for the Council, Mr. Davkhare, whose term is to end on July 7, said it is yet to be decided.
The NCP termed Mr. Davkhare an opportunist. “He has been threatening to quit for quite some time. Let’s see how he charts his course in the BJP,” party spokesperson Nawab Malik said.
